Man used false identity to work at nursing home for 6 years, authorities charge

A man used a false identity to gain employment at a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility where he worked for six years, authorities in Tennessee have charged.

Manuel Espinoza faces charges of felony identity theft and resisting arrest, according to local news reports. The 42-year-old was taken into custody Wednesday at his home in Gallatin, TN. He had quit his job at the 207-bed Gallatin Health Care Center in May after managers questioned his identity, reports state.

The facility administrator, Sonya Kemp, has not said what Espinoza's job title was, but told local reporters that he was “a model individual.” She said he passed the federally mandated background check and drug test when he was hired in 2007, but could not verify whether he presented a Social Security card.

Kemp was not available to take a call from McKnight's on Monday.

Espinoza has confessed to purchasing a Social Security number from an unidentified person in Gallatin for $200, according to news sources. The SSN belongs to a man in Texas who stopped receiving disability benefits as a result of the fraud, authorities say.

As of Friday, Espinoza was being held in county jail on a $20,000 bond, reported The Tennessean. He is scheduled to next appear in court Nov. 6, according to the newspaper.